The greatest ethnologist of the 20th century Lev Nikolaevich Gumilev used to say about the ethnic groups the following: ethnic group is a stable form of collective existence of people naturally formed and organically embedded into the biosphere (landscape). Every ethnic group being part of the particular environment, in other words landscape, set itself off against all other similar communities by distinguishing itself with behavioral pattern and mentality. Ethnic groups are formed both in Lithic Age and today on the basis of complementarity which shows itself in common likings and disliking both for people and natural phenomenon. According to Mr. Gumilev the group of similar ethnic groups forms “super ethnic group" which by means of creating ethnic traditions forms cultural and world outlook, forms of communal conduct and economy which have unique peculiarities in every ethnic group. (2) Today there are more than five thousand ethnic groups in the world. Their number continuously increases. The average lifetime of an ethnic group according to Mr. Gumilev comprises around 1200 years. After its birth the ethnic group evolves going through several stages in its development. The natural life of an ethnic group could be interrupted ending up at any stage depending on historical situation. It could also stretched exceeding 2000-year mark.

Then it was Berdyaev who wrote: “The antagonisms of Russian existence always found their reflection in Russian literature and philosophy. The creative works of Russian soul are as binary as Russian’s history”. Then he develops his observation: “The image of Dostoevsky is as binary as the image of Russia. It evokes the opposite feelings. The fathomless depth and immense height combine with some kind of meanness, baseness, lack of dignity and slavery. The immense love to people, indeed the Christ’s love combine with misanthropy and cruelty. Craving for absolute freedom in Christ co-exists with the slave obedience. It’s Russia, isn’t it?” – He makes the conclusion.

ETHNOSES OF THE CRIMEA

After I read one single comment on my article I didn’t even answer it because the author of the reproof could not give any constructive criticism except for the negative emotions and complete ignorance of his own history to the argument provided by the author of the conception. Nevertheless, bearing in mind a well known axiom: “If weren’t understood means that it was you who couldn’t clearly state your idea”. The author of the conception (me) decided to develop it in order that even “every full could understand it”.
With this purpose I gathered the additional material and wrote the new work which I propose to the reader’s consideration. This work was also published (in the book titled “Geography of Crimea in Scientific-Popular Style”). It had the positive responses of the strict and unbiased critics, regardless that it repeats the idea of existence of two Russian peoples who are so unlike. Though, I’d like to dot all "i's and cross all t’s right away: It wasn’t me who first expressed this “seditious” idea, for which my opponent curses me in the choicest language. It was first stated by the commonly known Russian poet Mikhail Yurevich Lermontov (who, by the way, wasn’t Slav, but was Russian to the very marrow of his bones, as well as Pushkin and all writers of Tsarist Russia). This idea could be heard in his genius rhyme:

Farewell my Russia, filthy treasure,
The land of slaves, the land of lords
And you, the uniforms so azure,
And you, to them devoted hordes.

Frankly speaking Lermontov did not define exactly who was slave and who was lord in Russia. However, he also did not distinguish Russians as the nation and ethnic group. And it is quite understandable because Lermontov wasn’t ethnologist. He was a poet. I improved Mikhail Lermontov’s small imperfections, because I’m a geographer and ethnologist. And that’s why I’m bare the full responsibility for that.
Let me propose to your consideration my new work that supports the same old ideas.

IS CONTEMPORARY RUSSIA NATURE
ENOUGH TO CREATE A NATION?

The question put in the title of this article isn’t the rhetoric one. With my entire honor of Igor Suzdaltsev the President of the institute of nationalities and Vladimir Putin the President of Russia, Mr. Suzdaltsev refers to, I would doubt it. And I could prove my doubt.
So, let us start from afar, that is, from the fact that before 1917 there was already Russian nation in Russia. In spite of the fact that it formed not in the democratic state, but within the depth of the slaveholding empire. Nevertheless, the privileged class of that state built an isolated community that met the demands made the nation (see the article of Mr. Suzdaltsev “Nation or Slavery” above). In other words, the nation in Russia was formed not by the whole population of the country, but exclusively by the class of nobility. Like Spartans in far away Ancient Greece. The slaves whose number was unaccountably high did not take part in this process because they were not even considered for people before a certain time. However, when on a certain stage of the development of the society the idea of equality was introduced the nation was already formed. The Russian bond slave found himself out of the nation.

KARAITS’ TRAGEDY

September 2007 the long-awaited scientific conference on Karaites issues was held in Crimea. Even though I was not able to attend it, I know that there wasn’t any report presented on this conference concerning the main problem of this unique, but disappearing people. Alas! On some reason, no one loudly dared declaring that Karaite people literally disappear before the eyes of today’s generation. You shouldn’t necessary be an expert-ethnologist to see this phenomenon. Studying the statistics, that is open and known to any Karaite, is quite enough. Nevertheless, Karaites maintain olympian calm, and keep on discussing the ongoing domestic affairs at the conferences, without noticing the main problem.

WHAT KIND OF ARMY NEEDS RUSSIA

Before giving respond to the question stated in the title I should explain what kind of army Russia has now. Can it meet the modern demands and perform the tasks set before it. If it can’t (it seems like it is really so), then only after that we could consider the reforming of our army. However, every consideration precedes the historical analysis, because every present state/situation is the result of the past, as well as it is impossible to built up the future without consideration of the present. That is why I will start my reflection from the history.
For some ignorant persons it might be the revelation and even might seem nonsense, but the fact remains the fact: the modern Russian army and its principal regulations were founded as far back as by Peter the first’s reforms. In order not to be groundless I will remind you the school history.

VAKHABIZM IN CRIMEA

(The Problem from the point of view of historian, geographer, and politician)

It’s a common knowledge that the formation of Crimean Tatar nation was historically linked with the introduction of Islam in Crimea. Crimean Tatars - the indigenous people of Crimea inhabited Crimea since the 15th century they lived in numerous separate feudal settlements. Their religious belonging also varied greatly. In other words, several religions co-existed peacefully on quite small territory. It was the result of complex historic formation of the indigenous population of Crimea. Starting back from the ancient times when Crimea was first under Byzantium authority, then Rome, then again under Christian Byzantium and Jew’s Khazaria, the Christians of all kinds (Orthodox, Iconoclasts, Nestorians, Catholics, etc.), Jews, Karaites, and Pagans could found their asylum here. As far as Islam concerns, it came to Crimea comparably late when Crimea came under the authority of Golden Horde. However, even then its impact and expansion in Crimea was very small even after the Golden Horde Khan Uzbek (1312 – 1341) introduced Islam as the state religion of the empire.

The Demographic Problems of Russia on the Threshold of the Millenniums or Russia after the Revolution of 1991

One and a half decade passed after the collapse and falling into 15 parts of the last archaic empire on Earth called the Soviet Union. In fact the Soviet Union was an Empire of slaves, created instead of the Empire of slaves and masters (according to the apt note made by Lermontov M.U. – “the state of slaves, the state of masters”). During the First World War the slaves took power from their masters and founded (already for the first time in the history of a mankind) the Empire of slaves that existed almost 75 years until 1991. For that period, in other words during the existence of the Empire of slaves some of the slaves’ children, to be more precise, their grandchildren received education and saw in the mirror of the history their unattractive reflection as to the present and revolted. There were more than enough reasons– the country retreated not just to feudalism, but back to elementary slavery incompatible with the general trend of development of a mankind. As a result there was just another revolution following which the empire disappeared.

Autocracy and Democracy

In one of my last works ("Who Prepares Revolution in Russia?") I causally expressed an idea that today Russia finally started turning from autocracy to democracy in the wake of Western Europe. However, all this considering, it was mentioned that the process of democratization of Russian society is accompanied by the recurrences of return to the authoritarianism which is the results of reluctance of the ruling regime to restrain oneself on one's own will with the laws of the democratic existence on one side, and unreadiness and immaturity of the overwhelming majority of population to acquire the rights of free citizens on the other side. Too uncommon is this situation for Russia that lived in the conditions of the severe authoritarianism up to the end of the 20th century. You see, the democracy assumes the corresponding self-consciousness and cultural level of the society that stands on a higher step of development of public consciousness than the authoritarian society. In Russia, however, as it was already mentioned in that work the population is not homogeneous on its cultural level: the capital and multimillion cities in their development left Russian province behind for tens years. That is why the transition to the democracy slips in Russia making attempts to return to the usual autocracy.

Few Biographic ObservationsOr Few Words About Myself

My birth to this world on December 30, 1934 to be more precise my impregnation at the end of March – beginning of April of the same year wasn't planned by my parents. I will say even more: neither my mother, nor my father wished my birth. There were many reasons of that. Among them were both objective and subjective. Among the first one I should mention the universal hunger organized by the Bolshevik communists in Ukraine, North Caucasus and Povolzh’e in 1923-33 when people got mad because of hunger and eat their own children.

Historical formation of the indigenous people of Crimea

The contemporary ethnonym of the indigenous people of Crimea is Crimean Tatars. Hellenes who came to the shores of Crimea already in the 7 century B.C. called the first inhabitants of the peninsula as Tauri. But Tauri were not the only ethnic group inhabiting the peninsula then. The flat lands were occupied by other tribes whose livelihood was different from that of Tauri inhabiting the mountain and coastal areas. Those tribes were cattle-breeders and military wise had cavalry that was unknown to Tauri. However Tauri mastered off-shore navigation and on their primitive vessels were undertaking piratic attacks on Hellene seafarers.

SLAVERY AND GENOCIDE

(Report, read on the topical Conference on genocide of the Crimean Tatar people in Simferopol on March 26, 2011)

A wise and observant man once said: “The past, growing through the present, forms our future”. I hope you understand the image? In fact, nothing in this world goes without leaving a trace. What am I talking about? I mean that the genocide - one of the hardest crimes in a human society has its roots. However, in order to get rid of this vice and prevent the recurrences of misanthropic manifestations in the future, when the whole nations are victimized and exterminated, the mankind first of all has to eliminate the roots of this hatred, this xenophobia.

Indigenous Peoples and National Minorities of Crimea

It’s a common knowledge that the geographical position is a key factor of forming of the population in the particular territory. It was the famous ethnologist Lev Nikolayevich Gumilev who pointed out at this fact. As far as the territory of Crimea concerns, its geographical position not only determined, but also dictated the conditions of the existence of its population during the whole history of its colonization. What was it mainly manifested in? It was the very fact that Crimea is a peninsular. One could even say it is an island. You see, 99 per cent of its territory is washed by the sea. Thus, the fist inhabitants of Crimea who arrived there by chance or accidentally via the Perekop neck unwittingly became its hermits, because whatever direction they went they were certainly hampered by the boundless sea.